Police beat

Reynoldsburg: 8-year-old girl takes younger siblings on joyride

Friday May 31, 2013 10:40 PM

Reynoldsburg police said an 8-year-old went on a joyride in a white Toyota with three younger siblings while her mother ran into a store to shop.

A Reynoldsburg officer said he was dispatched at 7:18 p.m. May 17 on reports that the 8-year-old girl was driving around the parking lot at a business in the 2000 block of Reynoldsburg-Baltimore Road. The officer said when he arrived, the girl had the car stopped but the engine was on and she was "apparently looking after a 6-year-old, a 3-year-old and a 2-year-old in the car by themselves with the vehicle running."

"I went inside (the business) and spoke with the mother of the juveniles who stated that the children (had been) inside with her, however she sent them outside unsupervised to get the youngest child a drink," the officer said in the report. "The mother said they started the vehicle to keep cool."

He said the cashier at the business said the children had been outside for about 10 minutes. The officer said he warned the mother about child endangering and "she realized she was wrong in giving her car keys to an 8-year-old." No charges were filed.

In other police reports:

* A man reported his neighbor pulled a gun on him at 7:45 p.m. May 17 in the 2200 block of Hoover Drive. He told police he was playing baseball with his son when his dog got out. He said once he got the dog, the woman next door "made a rude comment" about keeping the dog on a leash.

The man said the woman's husband stepped in during the argument, lifted his shirt to show his gun and said, "I don't fight, I shoot."

The man with the gun told the officer that he lifted his shirt to give his gun to his wife because he thought he was going to get into a fight with his neighbor and did not want his gun getting involved, the officer said. No charges were filed but the officer collected written statements from everyone involved.

* Two shoplifters pushed, kicked and punched a loss prevention officer at 1:32 a.m. May 17 at a business in the 2700 block of Taylor Road. The employee said he watched a man and woman select two thermostats and multiple plumbing fittings and place them in a tan purse. When he tried to stop the woman at the door, he said, she fought with him, punching him in the head and scratching his right forearm. He said the man tore the woman's purse away, then a male customer grabbed the man and pinned him against the wall.

The incident is still under investigation, according to police.

* A dog biting another dog led to a citation for animals at large, a theft arrest and a report to Franklin County Children Services.

A Reynoldsburg police officer said he responded to an animal complaint at 4:40 p.m. May 18 at a residence in the 1500 block of Parkinson Drive, where a man said a dog had jumped the fence and attacked his dog when it was in his yard in the 6900 block of Retton Road. When the officer talked to a man at the Parkinson address, he said the owner of the dog was not home.

The officer left an animal-at-large citation for the owner and called Franklin County Animal Control. At the time an animal control officer arrived, she reported that an 8-year-old boy was home alone at the Parkinson Drive house. She said the boy stated "his mom and dad left him to go to the store to get milk."

She said the boy seemed unaware of how 911 worked and did not know his phone number or if he had a phone, according to the report.

After his parents arrived home, they told police his grandmother must have dropped off the boy. Police learned that an active theft warrant had been issued for the boy's mother, so she was arrested and transported to the Franklin County jail. A report was sent to Franklin County Children Services, the officer said.

* A pit bull was reported stolen at 4:30 p.m. May 19 from a residence in the 1800 block of Pickering Drive after the owner of the dog said he returned home and saw blood on the bedroom walls and window. The reporting officer said he determined that the dog had jumped out the window, which consisted of Plexiglas duct-taped to the window frame.

Neighbors told the officer the dog had gotten out of the house several times and had been observed that day running after and attacking children. The dog was found at 8:30 p.m. and taken to the Franklin County Animal Shelter. Its owner was cited for having a pit bull within the city limits.